Fool Me Once

Harlan Coben

Mar 2016 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

DON’T MISS THE NETFLIX SERIES FOOL ME ONCE—NOW AVAILABLE TO STREAM

A widowed veteran gets the shock of her life in this impossible-to-put-down thriller from the bestselling author and creator of the hit Netflix dramas The Stranger and Stay Close.

In the course of eight consecutive #1 New York Times bestsellers, millions of readers have discovered Harlan Coben’s page-turning thrillers, filled with his trademark edge-of-your-seat suspense and gut-wrenching emotion. In Fool Me Once, Coben once again outdoes himself....
 
Former special ops pilot Maya, home from the war, sees an unthinkable image captured by her nanny cam while she is at work: her two-year-old daughter playing with Maya’s husband, Joe—who was brutally murdered two weeks earlier. The provocative question at the heart of the mystery: Can you believe everything you see with your own eyes, even when you desperately want to? To find the answer, Maya must finally come to terms with deep secrets and deceit in her own past before she can face the unbelievable truth about her husband—and herself.

Ratings and reviews

Fool Me Once is a new novel by Harlan Coben. Maya Stern Burkett is burying her husband, Joe Burkett. He was shot in the park on night when out with Maya. Maya is a former Army Captain (returned home amid a little scandal) back home after being in Iraq (suffering PTSD). Maya now teaches others how to fly. She also has a two-year-old daughter, Lily. Maya is devastated at the loss of her husband. Maya lost her sister, Claire Walker within the last year as well. A friend gives her a picture frame that is also a nanny cam. Maya can take out the SD card and view the coverage of her daughter with the nanny, Isabella. Maya is checking the camera one morning and sees a man that looks just like her husband (wearing her husband’s clothes), Joe with their daughter, Lily. Maya confronts Isabella who denies seeing anything on the screen. She then sprays Maya with pepper spray, takes the SD card, and runs. Could Joe still be alive? Maya did not see the shot that killed her husband and it was a closed casket funeral (arranged by his family). Maya is determined to get some answers. Will Maya like the answers she receives? Of course, answers can lead to more questions! I was excited when I was contacted and asked if I wanted to read and review Fool Me Once. However, I was disillusioned. Fool Me Once is a fast-paced book and quick book (above average writing). There is too much of the book devoted to Maya thinking (especially paranoid thinking). The ending was also a big letdown (and slightly odd). I kept waiting for a big twist or a shocking reveal, but I did not get it. What I got was predictable and just what I expected. I was surprised by the choices Maya made especially considering she had a child (a lot of parents will be appalled by Maya’s decisions). This book was not what I expected from Harlan Coben. I give Fool Me Once 3.75 out of 5 stars. I did learn one important thing from Fool Me Once. Do not bring a nanny cam into my home! I received a complimentary copy of Fool Me Once from NetGalley (and the publisher) in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel.

“Fool Me Once Yes, She (Maya ) Definitely Fool Me More Than Once “ ALERT Spoilers in this REVIEW!!!! Dang this book had so many surprises. Like wow, and that Burkett’s family is some shady people. And Joe he’s been harming or killing people since a kid. And he’s mom been hiding it. SMH that’s a shame. I thought that his family had something to do with her sister death and maybe his death too. Not sure how much of Maya being the killer. It’s crazy, how Maya knew the whole time who the killer was smh. Like h

While this should have been a good story, it was too formulaic and lacking in the spirit of Coban's earlier novels. It almost felt as if he had started it and someone else had finished it. The ending was weak. The whole novel felt rushed, with plotlines thrown together, and characters tossed in but not developed. No doubt, this was my last financial contribution to Harlan Coben!

About the author

Harlan Coben is the #1 New York Times and international bestselling author of more than thirty novels, including I Will Find You, The Match, Win, Fool Me Once, Stay Close, and The Stranger, as well as the award-winning Myron Bolitar series. Coben has more than eighty million books in print in more than forty languages worldwide, and several of his novels have been made into Netflix series. The winner of Edgar, Shamus, and Anthony Awards, he lives in New Jersey.